It has been repeated again and again since the turn of the year that gaming as an industry is maturing rapidly. Sales have toppled previous years, more Western gamers than ever are playing, and the trends show no sign of slowing down. But are the sales trends true for used games as well? A presentation given by research firm OTX at this year's MI6 Game Marketing Conference in San Francisco has provided those very numbers, suggesting that used games are a huge contribution to the overall industry.

The presentation outlines the varying data regarding the sale of new games versus used games, suggesting that 49 million of the 75 million game purchasers in the US are buying used games. 60 percent of gamers buy both new and used games, while 28 percent buy solely new games and 3 percent buy only used games.

Research shows that 19 million game traders do so for "category reinvestment," that is, putting money back into their video game hobby. 16 million gamers are classified as "New Game Gluttons," subsidizing further games by trading in relatively new ones. More information about the report can be found on Gamasutra.

Gamestop's near-monopoly over the used market has led many to sour on the prospect of trading games in. More competition should make for some interesting changes and innovations in the market. However, the increase in the used game market may not tickle the fancy of publishers and developers that are having their content resold; some have been adamant about keeping used games and imports out of stores and other regions. How these companies react to this increased growth is hard to say, but one would imagine that digital distribution will be looking far more attractive in the wake of this report.

Latest Ars Video >

War Stories | Ultima Online: The virtual ecology

When creating Ultima Online, Richard Garriott had grand dreams. He and Starr Long planned on implementing a virtual ecology into their massively multiplayer online role-playing game. It was an ambitious system, one that would have cows that graze and predators that eat herbivores. However, once the game went live a small problem had arisen...

War Stories | Ultima Online: The virtual ecology

War Stories | Ultima Online: The virtual ecology

When creating Ultima Online, Richard Garriott had grand dreams. He and Starr Long planned on implementing a virtual ecology into their massively multiplayer online role-playing game. It was an ambitious system, one that would have cows that graze and predators that eat herbivores. However, once the game went live a small problem had arisen...